Heroes
by LinkIsMyHero
Summary: "But I'm not a hero, I'm a liar."


_Click click click. Tap tap tap. Click click click. Tap tap tap. Click tap click tap click tap._

_Click click click. Tap tap click. Click tap. Click tap. Click click. Tap tap._

Using all of the powers of restraint and control he had gained in his 17 years of life, Light Yagami stifled the twitch that threatened to overtake his eye.

It should be criminal, really, to have as many annoying habits as the annoying detective he was handcuffed to seemed to posses. Light had been attached to the Ryuuzaki for almost two months now, and he kept waiting for the man's exasperating mannerisms to become normal to him, but to his dismay, _certain _ones, such as his need to constantly be typing or tapping, still managed to drive him to the brink of insanity. The man was literally incapable of being completely motionless for a period of time.

Light sighed as he glanced at the clock that hung above their work station; attempting to squint the sleepiness from his eyes to make out the hour hand. Almost one in the morning. He sighed again.

"Is there a reason for Light-kun's excessive sighing?" as Ryuuzaki spoke this, his incessant tapping did not falter for a moment.

"It's quite late. I don't suppose we could call it quits for the night and head to bed?" Light replied, hoping that maybe Ryuuzaki would allow him to retire a bit earlier than usual to catch up on the sleep he was painfully deprived of.

"Light-kun is aware that there is still plenty of time to be working on the case and usually does not petition for sleep so early. Perhaps he is worried that we are closing in on Kira and therefore is trying to shorten work hours and keep me from discovering him. 14%."

"Ryuuzaki," Light ground out, his self-control being stretched to impressive limits due to his sleep-deprived crankiness, "I am _not _Kira. I am simply human. And exhausted."

_Click click. Tap tap. Click tap click. Tap cli—"_

"And on top of that, you won't stop making those God awful tapping and clicking noises!" Light waved goodbye to his precious self-control as Ryuuzaki beat out a series of especially obnoxious noises before turning to Light.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean." The smirk on Ryuuzaki's face was quite contrary to this statement, but Light ignored pointing this out in favor of screaming a few more complaints and obscenities at Ryuuzaki before finally huffing and settling in his chair.

"It seems when Light-kun doesn't get his precious sleep, he gets a wittle cranky." And that's when Light began to question his sanity. Because _never _in his life did he believe he would see the greatest three detectives in the world use a babyvoice, yes folks, a _baby _voice to mock him.

It was this concern for his health that distracted him from the anger Ryuuzaki's jibe would normally produce.

"Ryuuzaki," Light said, trying to direct conversation to an avenue that didn't make him feel like he'd lost his marbles, "you said that you believe you'll die young, right?"

The dark-eyed sleuth immediately sobered at hearing this.

"Of course this is not something I can verify, but yes, there is a significantly high percentage that I will die younger than what is expected of the average male."

"Do you think you'll be missed when you die?"

The slight raising of Ryuuzaki's eyebrows was the only indication of his puzzlement at the strange question. Light wasn't quite sure why he had asked him this particular question either. Light had an eternal list of questions for Ryuuzaki, out of curiosity to know more about the ever-mysterious elusive detective L, but had no idea why that morbid question had come to him. He just said the first thing that came to his mind so that he could keep Ryuuzaki talking and the computer noises would be absent awhile longer.

"That doesn't really concern you, does it Light-kun?" The suspicion in L's voice was enough to _almost _wish he had left the detective to his irritating typing.

"I'm not trying to gain anything from asking this, Ryuuzaki," Light sighed, "I was just asking out of curiosity."

"Light-kun thinks about things like my early demise and my loved ones sorrow? 15%."

"Ryuuzaki." He would have to answer to Light's dentist for all the clenched jaws and teeth grinding he caused.

"Do you think Kira will be missed when he meets his eventual death?"

"Why does everything have to be about Kira?" Light nearly yelled. Normally he didn't have so much trouble in regulating his voice but he was tired and Ryuuzaki was being especially obnoxious.

"He won't be." Ryuuzaki said quietly.

"What?"

"If there is justice in the world, Kira will not be missed."

"Well… you never know. Some people truly support Kira and his ideals, they may miss him…"

"Kira is a murderer. No matter how you look at it, he kills people. Just like the men he so righteously condemns."

"Yes, I suppose. But… if you did catch Kira, or he died, wouldn't you miss your greatest rival. From what I've gathered, _not _that I'm gathering information on you or something like that, Kira has been you're greatest challenge. Won't you miss the thrill of a good chase?" Light wasn't sure why, but he wanted to Ryuuzaki to care about Kira's death. It just seemed like if Kira was on his mind so often, it should be important to him whether he lived or not.

"No."

_Not gonna miss you when you're dead and gone._  
><em>Not gonna talk about you over and over and over.<em>  
><em>Not gonna file you under latest nostalgia, not happily ever after.<em>  
><em>Not gonna listen to your played out songs (played out songs).<em>  
><em>Don't wanna think about you over and over and over.<em>  
><em>Not gonna read about the latest fads on your trendy blog,<em>  
><em>I want nothin' to do with that.<em>

"I could have gone my whole life never learning of the person called 'Kira'."

_'Cause you've made a mess of everything,  
>(And I'm not listening).<em>

"Yea, but—"

"Kira is no hero. He deserves no admiration or reverence. He is manipulative and cold. He shoves his ideals down the people's throats that he slits, but, really, he's just a boy with a naïve view of the world and a frightening thirst for power."

_You're not a hero, you're a liar.  
>You're not a savior, you're a vampire.<br>Sucking the life out of all the friends you've ever known.  
>You're just a trainwreck, not a winner.<br>Up on your soap box preaching down to the sinners.  
>A saint without a cause, we're not listening, we're not listening.<em>

For some reason, Light felt the sting of Ryuuzaki's harsh words. Maybe because the traits he was describing fit Light fairly well, though he suspected Ryuuzaki knew this. Did that mean Ryuuzaki would also feel no sorrow over his death as well?

"Kira has started this… this war. He leaves people questioning their morals. He leads people to believe that it is okay to kill if it has proper justification whether if it's based on their own goals or for the 'good of the world', but murder is wrong. No one can tell how people will affect others in their life. A man may murder one day, the next become a man of God helping thousands of people while trying to repent for his sins."

_I'm gonna a start a revolution,__  
><em>_Of convoluted disillusion.__  
><em>_(Start a revolution)__  
><em>_I'll lead a war with no conclusion,__  
><em>_And in the final hour I'll be a confident coward._

"But they're criminals! Criminals do what they do because they want to. And people who have desires that involve murder, rape, stealing, whatever, they are bad people. To the core."

"How can you know this, Light-kun? How can you be sure that there weren't extenuating circumstances that led people to make the choices that they did? You can hear a news report or read a biography of a man, but you don't truly know him. How he thinks. What he was feeling in the moment of his crime. How his upbringing and current situation affected his choices. Who are you or anyone else to determine this man's fate? In the end, Kira is a coward. He murders people behind closed doors. He won't show his face, or from what I can tell, do the dirty work on his own. He has people rioting and fighting, while he sits and watches the chaos he creates out of harm's way."

This was surely the most Light had ever heard Ryuuzaki say at once, but even more surprising was the passion in his voice. It was times like these that made Light feel like he was a kid. Ryuuzaki, who had surely seen much of the ways of the world because of his job, maybe more than a man his age should, seemed to dwarf him. He was so wise for his few years that sometimes Light felt little more than a child who wasn't as smart as he thought he was.

"Wow… Ryuuzaki."

_'Cause if we stand for nothing, we'll fall for anything._

"I apologize, it seems I've been ranting." His demure tone didn't seem to fit with the character that Light had just witnessed.

"It's alright Ryuuzaki. It's fascinating to have a look into the way you think; I understand why you're always analyzing me.

Ryuuzaki didn't look especially happy at the thought of being scrutinized.

_Now this is moving in the same direction,__  
><em>_But I'm a little too spent to care.__  
><em>_'Cause it's a battlefield 'til it blows over,__  
><em>_Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.__  
><em>_We're throwing stones though we live in glass houses.__  
><em>_We talk shit like it's a cross to bare.__  
><em>_You're only relevant until you get older,__  
><em>_Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer._

"Well Light-kun, we are quite alike."

"Yes, I suppose we are, but that's what makes us such good rivals."

He gave him a short nod before bringing his thumb to his lip and lightly nipping on it; a pensive look on his pale features. He stayed that way for about a minute, so Light began to type, but after a few taps of the keys, Ryuuzaki murmured something quietly.

"What was that, Ryuuzaki?" Light turned to stare at the detective, who had a soft look in his eyes that made Light's stomach feel tight and knotted. It was a strange feeling to say the least.

"It's also what makes us such good friends."

Light looked a little dumbstruck for the moment before giving a curt nod.

"A perfect match."

_Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer._

L nodded before resuming his typing. Light tried to focus on his task but his mind was still too wrapped up in processing his conversation with the detective to focus on his work.

"I don't know." Ryuuzaki said cryptically.

"Ahh what?"

"Light-kun asked if I thought I would be missed when I'm gone, the answer is: I don't know."

"Oh."

"Alhough, I suppose we all hope to be missed when we pass. We hope to have been significant enough to even just one person to be truly missed. But I have lived my life away from people. My relationships consisting mainly of ones based on necessity due to work. I don't know if anyone would see my death as anything more than the loss of the detective L."

"You'll be missed."

"Hmm?" the sleuth asked, with a tone of disinterest, as if he was already resigned from the conversation.

"Ryuuzaki, Ryuuga Hideki, whoever you are. You will be missed." The candid and overpowering conviction in Light's tone made the detective squirm a bit.

"What makes you so sure?" Ryuuzaki asked.

"You have a way… about you. That despite all of your eccentricities and blunt manner, that makes people _care _about you. Your skill and determination as a detective get people to admire you. But beyond that is an unwavering passion and subtle kind and gentle manner that people will truly miss when you're gone."

Dark eyes widened as they stared at the fiery boy.

_They're gonna miss me when I'm dead and gone.__  
><em>_They're gonna talk about me over and over and over.__  
><em>_They're gonna file me under latest nostalgia, happily ever after._

"You and Kira may be a lot alike. You manipulate people, even your friends. You lie, use underhanded methods. You prey on people's weaknesses. And you preach your ideals of justice to anyone who will or won't listen. But you have one very key difference from Kira."

_But I'm not a hero, I'm a liar.__  
><em>_I'm not a savior, I'm a vampire.__  
><em>_Sucking the life out of all the friends I've ever known.__  
><em>_We're a trainwreck, not winners.__  
><em>_On a soap box preaching down to the sinners.__  
><em>_Saints without a cause, we're not listening, we're not listening,__  
><em>_We're not listening, we're not listening._

"You are humble enough to understand that you are just one _man._ Not above the law or any other human being. And people will undoubtedly love and miss you for that."

Ryuuzaki swallowed before he opened his eyes. He got up from his chair and stood to his full height. His crouch gone and his gait long and graceful as walked toward Light rather than shuffling and awkward. He stopped right in front of the boy's face.

He waited there a moment before whispering: "Thank you… Light." _For understanding me. For telling me I'm not Kira. For accepting me as I am. _

"Anytime." Light smiled up into Ruuzaki's eyes, while his warm brown ones filled with a fierce emotion that the dark-haired man was unable to deny.

_For loving me._

Ryuuzaki grabbed Light by arm and slowly brought him up to full height, which was slightly shorter than himself when he straightened out. There chests were barely touching, their heart beats pounding almost audibly in the space between them.

Ryuuzaki slowly leaned down and pressed his pale lips to Light's soft warm ones. Their kiss was gentle, and lasted but a moment.

The two men were unique, headstrong, flawed, caring, intelligent, manipulative, passionate people. They thrived off of each other's fire. Their vitality and competitiveness pushing each other to strive to be better men.

They weren't heroes, but humans, with the humbleness and arrogance to believe that they had captured the elusive feeling of love. And no matter what else happened in their lives, that would remain the most heroic and beautiful thing they had ever done.

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer: <strong>I do not own, or even attempt to own, Death Note or All Time Low. Please leave me alone. :3

So, I have already posted this story on once, but I took it down for various reasons. But, after going through some old stories I decided I quite liked it. It's a little fluffy and rambly but hey, why not? I'm sorry for not uploading in forever but I just haven't had much inspiration or confidence to write lately. But I've been thinking about some new story ideas, so maybe I'll post something soon! Anyways, lyrics from the song Heroes by All Time Low. Please read and give me thoughts, ideas, and constructive criticism.

**-LinkIsMyHero**


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